KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan women's soccer team rallied from an early 1-0 deficit to defeat Buffalo, 2-1, in Mid-American Conference action at the WMU Soccer Complex on Friday afternoon.
After going down in the ninth minute on a goal by UB's Carissima Curtona, the Broncos (9-6-0, 3-4-0 MAC) netted two goals in the first half and shut the Bulls down in the second for the win. WMU outshot Buffalo 13-10 in the game and had a 6-3 advantage in shots on goal.
"It feels great to get a win this afternoon, especially against a very good Buffalo team," said head coach Lauren Sinacola. "We had a lot of players play very well that stepped up when we needed them to. I am very happy with how our team responded to going down early. We never stopped believing and we never gave up."
The Broncos tied up the game in the 19th minute on Emma Kahn's third goal of the season. Alyssa Burke started the attack up the right side and slipped it outside to Liz Abro. Abro fired a cross into the box that was initially deflected by Laura Dougall, UB's goalkeeper. The ball got past Dougall and Kahn was there to tap it in. Burke notched her team-best fifth assist on the goal.
Western Michigan took the lead in the 35th minute on Kendall Juhnke's third goal of the season. WMU was putting significant pressure on the Bulls and forced a turnover inside the 18-yard box. The shot was deflected outside the box to Juhnke, who volleyed it into the net from 25-yards out.
Junior goalkeeper Stephanie Heber made two saves in the second half to keep Buffalo from scoring and securing the win.
Western Michigan is back in action on Sunday at 1 p.m. against Akron. The team will celebrate its senior class of Abro, Mackenzie Barber, Jewell Edwards, Makenzie Larson, Megan Ross, Olivia Vollmers and Candice Uhl.
"I'm looking forward to Sunday," added Sinacola. "We not only have another chance to play as a team, but we have a wonderful opportunity to play for our group of seniors. This class is special to me and to this program. I'm excited to honor them."
Sunday's game can also be viewed online for free at wmubroncos.com/watch.
